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6 plead guilty in scheme to steal checks

ATLANTA — Six people have pleaded guilty in federal court in Atlanta to participating in a scheme to steal U.S. Treasury checks worth more than $2.8 million.

Federal prosecutors say Gerald Eason of Stockbridge, who was a supervisor at an Atlanta mail distribution facility, conspired with another former postal worker, Deborah Fambro-Echols of Hapeville, to steal and cash the checks. Eason pleaded guilty Monday, and Fambro-Echols pleaded guilty last week.

The two are accused of stealing the checks in March and April of last year.

Prosecutors say four other people acted as brokers and check cashers for the pair and have pleaded guilty in the scheme. These individuals forged endorsements and used fake identifications to pose as the intended recipients of the checks when cashing them.